Apocalypse -- Ten Years For Wenzhou Shoe Enterprises To Deal With Trade Barriers

10 years after joining the WTO, Zhejiang Province

Come forward

Dare to deal with

In November 13, 2001, the foreign trade department of the Turkey government issued a notice to launch the "safeguard measures" investigation procedure for glasses from China and take regulatory measures for the relevant products during the survey period.

Most of the export enterprises for earth glasses are in Wenzhou.

In December 28th of that year, Wenzhou's Sunway optical company and other eyewear enterprises submitted a defense letter to the Turkish side, which became China's "first debate on WTO accession" and opened up a precedent for Chinese enterprises to actively respond to foreign anti-dumping, countervailing measures and safeguard measures (two counter one guarantees).

In July 9, 2005, the European Union launched anti-dumping duties on Chinese leather shoes, of which 130 enterprises were involved in Wenzhou and the amount involved was about 45000000 US dollars.

This is the largest trade barrier case involving Wenzhou since China's accession to the WTO. "Shoe capital Wenzhou" is facing a severe test of anti-dumping.

Since then, from the European Union's subsequent anti-dumping investigations, it has done a great job of killing Wenzhou.

Chinese enterprises are not discouraged.

with

From April 2004 to July, due to its patent infringement, the American companies such as Lai Fu ton sued Tongli Technology Group Company in 3 local courts of the United States respectively.

In the face of pressure, Tongling group came forward to compete with American enterprises for seven years, and finally won the first case of overseas intellectual property rights protection in China.

After China's accession to the WTO, enterprises began to encounter a large number of trade barriers, and Wenzhou, which had a high dependence on foreign trade, was pushed to the cusp of the storm.

According to the data, from 2001 to November 2011, Wenzhou experienced a total of more than 80 international trade barriers, including anti-dumping, countervailing, American 337 investigation and CR standard, involving more than 1000 enterprises.

In the face of difficulties, Wenzhou did not choose to retreat, but to cope with it and strive for a fair international trade environment.

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"Ten chopsticks bundles" is good at coping with

In June 27, 2002, the European Union launched a strong anti-dumping against Wenzhou based lighter products.

This is an anti dumping case of Wenzhou lighters that affect the whole country.

At that time, Wenzhou enterprises suffered such a big wave of international trade friction for the first time.

Enterprises are the protagonists to deal with international trade barriers.

However, they are all small and micro enterprises. They are very weak. Like a loose mass of sand, entrepreneurs have four fears in their hearts: "fear of lawsuits, fear of spending money, fear of trouble, fear of losses", and thus get into a sense of hesitation and dilemma.

At the other end, time enters countdown, and a few days later, if no longer respondent, it will be annihilated.

If we do not fight, we will die.

At the time of crisis, under the leadership of President Zhou Dahu, the Wenzhou lighters Association took the opportunity to advance in a difficult way and stood up bravely.

The association decided to make a brilliant move to organize 17 enterprises to raise funds together, and ten chopsticks tied together to answer suit.

In order to boost morale, Zhou Dahu took the lead to make more contributions and organized the support of the lighter association to support the public's courage.

With the organizers, the money and the resultant force, we have confidence and courage.

To this end, the association not only dare to deal with, but also be good at dealing with: they are divided into two parts, on the one hand, the two enterprises, such as the East lighter factory, are responding to the European Union individually, with the "no dumping defense" and the tactical defense of applying the market economy status to the European Union.

On the other hand, it adopts the strategy of "keeping in line with the outside world", giving full play to the institutional advantages of the association, actively consulting and communicating with the association of European lighters importers in the name of the association, exerting pressure on the European Union by the European lighter Importers Association, and lobbying the European Union importers and the Chinese lighters industry for damage, forcing the European Union to compromise.

Through the wits and wits, the Wenzhou lighters Association finally achieved this victory in dealing with EU anti-dumping.

This great victory played three major roles: ensuring that Wenzhou lighters continued to enter the EU market; greatly encouraged the lighters industry and other industries to fight against foreign trade barriers; in particular, it opened up a new way to organize and coordinate foreign trade barriers to the trade associations. The relevant state departments and many experts spoke highly of this: it has important reference and guiding significance for the whole country.

Since then, the Wenzhou lighters association has organized many enterprises to take the EU CR law defense path, and has achieved remarkable results.

Over the past 10 years, Wenzhou shoe leather, spectacles, zippers, synthetic leather, electrical appliances and other trade associations have played a positive and irreplaceable role in organizing enterprises to participate in dealing with foreign trade frictions, formulating litigation plans and coordinating the work of responding to complaints.

Careful organization and effective guidance

In September 16, 2004, a serious incident of burning Chinese shoes took place in Elche, Spain, which caused heavy losses to Wenzhou's export trade.

After the incident, in June 2005, the Wenzhou municipal government and the Municipal Bureau of foreign trade and economic cooperation organized the trade associations and enterprises to form a business delegation of shoe leather to Spain to exchange and communicate with the European Union, Spain and Elche.

This trip opened up a precedent for China's shoe enterprises to talk about Spanish shoe enterprises, which aroused great repercussions in the locals and eased the resentment of local industry to China's footwear industry to a certain extent.

In December of the same year, the Elche Footwear Association paid a return visit to Wenzhou, and published the Wenzhou declaration from competition to competition.

Over the years, the Wenzhou municipal government and the foreign trade and Economic Cooperation Bureau have carefully organized and effectively guided foreign trade barriers for enterprises.

They give full play to the intermediary role of the industry and carry out fair trade early warning.

Since 2007, the Ministry of foreign trade and economic cooperation of two provinces and municipalities has shifted the focus of fair trade in imports and exports from passive response to active early warning service, set up an early-warning mechanism, carry out the construction of "forewarning and demonstration points for foreign trade" and "early warning and response service points for trade barriers".

The establishment of the early warning mechanism for trade barriers is very effective in collecting information on foreign trade barriers and pmitting them to the government and enterprises in a timely manner.

It makes the enterprises master the "sign" and "seedling" of trade barriers as soon as possible.

Now, 15 trade associations with high sensitivity to international trade friction have set up an early warning and response mechanism for trade barriers. The service points basically cover 66% of the total export volume of our city.

Now, this pioneering work is expanding overseas, and Wenzhou has taken the lead in building an import and export fair trade overseas warning and monitoring system and an overseas fair trade information workstation throughout the country.

According to statistics, in the past 10 years, 43 cases have been filed by enterprises in Wenzhou, with 53.75% responding cases, 53 cases being awarded, 30 winning cases, and 56.6% winning cases.